A blog where I post a mixture of photos that I have taken and find amusing, interesting, artistic, surprising or strange.

Wednesday, 7 March 2012

AS EVENING FALLS IN THESSALONIKI

Thessaloniki, (also known as Salonika or Saloniki) is Greece's second largest city with a population of ≈800,000 people. It has given Greece some of its greatest musicians, artists, poets and thinkers. It has some of the most beautiful beaches and has some of the finest hotels and best restaurants in northern Greece. It is home to the Thessaloniki Film Festival and the International Trade Fair and host to many cultural events, with theatres, museums and many historical sites. The esplanade is a gorgeous place to visit as the sun sets...

The "White Tower" (Lefkós Pírgos) is the most famous landmark of Thessaloniki. The present tower replaced an old Byzantine fortification which was mentioned around the 12th century and reconstructed by the Ottomans to fortify the city's harbour, it became a notorious prison and scene of mass executions during the period of Ottoman rule. It was substantially remodelled and its exterior was whitewashed after Greece gained control of the city in 1912. It has been adopted as the symbol of the city.

Aristotelous Square, one of Thessaloniki's most recognisable areas, which was designed by Ernest Hebrard

The Ladadika (Oil warehouse) quarter is located at the west side of the port. In the past, this was a neighbourhood of ill-repute, but today it is considered as one of the best nightlife spots in Thessaloniki. It is an old quarter, with narrow paved streets and neoclassical buildings. Some abandoned houses can be found there, while some others have been restored and host cafeterias and restaurants

You get around, don't you just.Enjoyed these foreign scenes very much.And I love your blog title.You mentioned how the Australian parks mimic the Englsih landscape: I read somewhere that they want to do away with the European trees and replace them with indigenous ones. Is that a sort of 'au revoir' gesture to England? It seems strange that they want to bring in the outback, that you have already sufficient of elsewhere :-)And all the city/town streets are replete with the lovely flowering trees you have.

Don't you love Greece? It's the perfect country for a vacation! I got the biggest kick out of the shop owners in Athens calling, "My best deal for you !ONLY for you!" Wished we would have come as far as Thessalonica!

What a wonderful day I just experienced looking at each of your pictures. They are awesome. Greece must be absolutely beautiful. The old and the new all mixed in together. These photos show off the beauty of the area so well. Kudos to you. genie